Lightning in a Bottle
by Randy Taylor
Summary: This takes place literally right after the series finale of Home Improvement. That's all I'm going to say. You'll have to read and review to find out the rest. Rated T, like all my stories, just to be safe, because I don't yet know what might happen.
1. Chapter 1: Follow Your Heart

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 1

"Follow Your Heart"

Tim's POV

'Oh, look, Al must have dropped his wedding vows. We should put them in a special place' Jill says. We're cleaning up the backyard after having hosted Al and Trudy's wedding.

'Okay, toss them in here' I say, brandishing a trash can. This makes Jill laugh.

'Look, your wedding arch didn't fall down' Jill comments, looking up.

'Do you remember the last time we were under one of those? We had no money; we had no kids' I ask Jill.

'No idea how our lives would turn out' she adds.

'I think so far they've turned out pretty well. If you had to go back and do it all over again, would you do it?'

'Yeah. Yeah, I would. I mean, there's been bumps along the road, I haven't always known where we were headed, there's always a possibility of a crash, but I wouldn't want to travel with anyone else but you' Jill replies.

'As a matter of fact, I would change things' I say after a moment's thought.

'Yeah? What would you change?' she asks.

'I don't think I'd propose to you in the back of a '68 Dodge Dart 273.'

'Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, so what kind of car would you choose?'

'That's not what I mean. If I had to do it again, I'd pick a more romantic spot. First time I looked at you, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. Now twenty years later, I have the same feelings. Except this numbness in my thumb I can't explain. Jill Patterson, will you marry me?'

'No' Jill says. What?!

'No?' I question.

'I'm already married to the perfect guy.' Jill pulls me closer for a kiss. 'I know you don't want to go to Indiana.'

'It's not about me, it's about you. Are you willing to give up this opportunity?' I ask.

'Yeah I am. I don't want to leave my life here. Now I, I just, I can't imagine leaving this house' Jill says. I turn around and look at the house. Hmm…

'Well, if we ever decide to move, maybe we wouldn't have to leave the house' I tell her.

'What does that mean?' she asks.

'It means you're married to the Tool Man, which means that if there's a way to move this house, I'll find it! Ar ar ar!' I say excitedly. Jill laughs and goes back to cleaning up.

'What's all this talk about moving, anyways? We don't have a house picked out yet down in Indiana. We haven't gotten Randy's opinion on this. I mean, he only has one year of school left. It's not really fair to him to just uproot his entire life like that, without even considering him' she says.

'I'm sure Randy will think it's a great idea. And honey, we just talked about the house' I say.

'And it's not just that, it's leaving Wilson, Al, Trudy, Heidi, your mom, and the list goes on and on. And don't even try to tell me that you're going to drag all of them with us to Bloomington. I guess more than anything else, it's the memories here. None of those would be the same in Indiana' Jill says. We're sitting on the porch swing on the gazebo by now.

'Yeah, but don't you think it's time for a change? Don't you ever just feel like you've come as far as you can here in Detroit?' I press on with my case.

'So? What's wrong with being the big fish in the small pond? What's wrong with having a little routine, maybe even some normalcy, every once in a while?' She looks over at me and the face I'm making trying to keep the mosquitoes away. She laughs. 'I forgot. With you, there's no such thing as normalcy.' We both laugh and look up at the starry night sky.

The truth is, I'll miss it here in Detroit too. But Indiana will be fun. It'll be a whole new area to scout for hardware stores. Geez, Jill hasn't even agreed to this yet, and I'm already thinking in terms of will.

'Heidi ho, soon to be ex-neighbors' Wilson says, snapping me out of my thoughts.

'Hi Wilson' Jill and I reply in unison.

'I saw you two outside, so I figured I'd come by with a pitcher of my homemade lemonade and offer you some' Wilson says.

'Thank you Wilson. You're such a nice neighbor' Jill says, taking a glass from the tray Wilson was carrying.

'As long as you're here, could you maybe give us some advice?' I ask.

'On moving to Indiana?' he asks.

'Yes' I say.

'I'm afraid that that's one subject that I don't have a quote or piece of useful advice on. This is a decision that, no matter how much I would like to be able to make for you, you two have to make for yourselves' Wilson says.

'Yeah, but if you had to make the decision, if it were entirely up to you, what would you do?' I ask.

'I would take Mary Ellis' advice. Here's what you do: Sit down together, and make a list of the pros and cons for both moving to Bloomington, and for staying here in Detroit. Then throw both lists away, and do what your heart tells you is the right thing to do' he advises.

'Who was Mary Ellis?' Jill asks.

'My grandmother. She was related to Samuel Ellis, the man whom Ellis Island is named after' Wilson responds.

We sit out there together for another half hour or so, just talking, reminiscing, drinking lemonade (which I think is spiked with something), and thinking about how different our lives will be all too soon.

* * *

A/N: Okay, so here's a new story. This one, unlike all my other stories to date, is going to focus on the entire Taylor family, not just one or two people.

The very beginning part, for those of you who don't recognize it, is the end of the last episode of the three part series finale for Home Improvement. All writing credits for that part go to Marley Sims, Lloyd Garver, and Bruce Ferber. I also need to thank hiarchive dot co dot uk (I typed it like that because Fan Fiction will block the site name otherwise) because that's where I got the transcript for the episode.

Just so everyone out there knows, Mary Ellis was actually _my_ grandmother (she passed away last summer as some of you know), and that was actually a piece of advice she liked to give. And no, as far as I know, she wasn't related to Samuel Ellis.

Anyways, please R&R, and thanks in advance for doing so.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


	2. Chapter 2: The Decision

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 2

"The Decision"

Tim's POV

'Jill, where are you going to at 7:30 in the morning?' I ask when I wake up and see that she's already gotten up, taken a shower, and is applying makeup.

'I'm going to talk to Dr. Lee. He's in town today to meet with me, and I'm going to tell him that I can't take the job' Jill replies.

'Jill, honey, I thought we talked about this already. We both agreed that it's just plain dumb for you not to take this job offer' I say.

'But it's even dumber for us to move and leave everybody we know here in Detroit. Not to mention the fact that the boys are less than enthusiastic about moving to Indiana. And have you ever been through Indiana? Every part of the state I've seen looks like it belongs in Dullsville. We're not moving and that's that. I've made up my mind' she counters. I must admit, she's got me on the boring thing.

'Jill, what are we going to do for income if we stay here? I can only put in so many hours down at the hardware store, and that won't pay well at all' I say.

'We can figure out something' she snaps and then walks out of the bedroom, her high heels whacking the floor hard.

'Bye' I shout.

That Evening

'I need to talk to you about this whole Indiana thing' Jill says as she sits down on the couch next to me.

'Why's that, couldn't you think of anything else for us to argue over?' I ask.

'Ha ha' she says sarcastically. 'No, in that interview today, something happened that changed my mind. Well, actually, it was before the interview. The secretary that was working here, at Dr. Lee's Detroit office, which, by the way doesn't have any openings, said that she's originally from Maine. When her husband lost his job and she lost hers, they tried staying in Maine. Long story short, they wound up filing for bankruptcy and had to get help from family and friends to get their lives back on track. I don't want that to happen to us. Then, I go into the interview, and Dr. Lee told me that there was a new opening that he was ready to give me that would pay twice as much as the original offer. I think our future is in Indiana' I explain.

'That's great! It really is. Oh, and we got a letter in the mail today. This following Tuesday, Randy will be back from Costa Rica. We're supposed to be at the airport at 1:30 in the afternoon, which I guess both of us unemployed people can manage' I say.

'Has it only been eight months since he first went over there? It seems like about eight decades' Jill says.

'I know. There's so much to catch him up on' I say. I think as far as everyone is concerned, next Tuesday can't come fast enough.

Next Tuesday

'They're late. The plane isn't coming. Something happened and the plane isn't coming' Jill says, jumping to conclusions.

'Jill, the plane was supposed to be here at 1:30. It's 1:32 right now. They'll be here' I assure her. Before I can even finish the sentence, a large group of well tanned teenagers carrying luggage come walking down the corridor. Randy is in the middle of the pack.

Jill runs toward the group, and nearly knocks over several of the teenagers in the process of getting to Randy. I follow her over, only in a calmer way.

'We missed you so much, Randy! How was it over there? Did you have fun? How was the plane ride? If you're tired, that's alright. Jet lag is perfectly natural' Jill says, and keeps on saying. Come to think of it, there are times when _I'm _embarrassed to be with Jill in public.

'Randy, we have so much to tell you' I say when Jill finally gives him enough space to move.

On the way home in the car, we talked about everything that had happened since he left to return to Costa Rica last December. Me losing my job, Brad's knee injury, Jill's surgery, and Jill getting the job offer in Indiana. He absorbs it all fairly well, with the sole exception being the news about us moving to Indiana. I was afraid something like this would happen. All this will do is fuel Jill's doubts, even if she has finally decided we need to move.

'Hey Randy, can I talk to you alone for a minute?' I ask when we get home and Jill has gone in the house.

'Yeah. What about?' he asks.

'About us moving to Indiana. Your mom and I have been agonizing over this decision for the past week. Neither one of us really wants to move to Indiana, but we don't have a choice. If we stay here, we won't be able to make ends meet. I finally managed to convince her that staying here is hopeless. I know it is hard on you, but if you aren't supportive, your mom will change her mind' I say.

'Dad, I understand where you're coming from here, but I still don't like the move any better. Don't get me wrong though, I'll go along with this and be supportive' he says.

'I never imagined leaving this house' he mumbles to himself as he walks away. I should've known something like this would happen. Things were going too well.

A/N: Okay, so this story is finally back. I've been trying to update this one, but I've given priority to the ones that haven't been updated since May or even April.

Hoped you enjoyed the chapter! Please R&R if you did.

Thanks for reading.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


	3. Chapter 3: Of Past Regrets

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 3

"Of Past Regrets…"

Randy's POV

I'm lying in bed when I hear my alarm clock go off. I wasn't asleep, so I roll over immediately and turn it off. I look at the clock for about the ten billionth time since last night. It' 5:45 now. I yawn. I didn't get even an hour of sleep. We have a pretty big day today. The whole family is driving to Indiana to look at houses. Even Brad is coming, although he'll be spending most of his time for the next few years in Los Angeles at UCLA.

I get out of bed and go upstairs after putting on my robe. I don't actually need to be up for another hour and a half, but I like to get up early and go outside and walk around barefoot in the grass. There's just something calming about the smell and feel of the dew covered grass. It's also something I haven't gotten to experience since last September.

I walk back and forth from one end of the yard to the other, trying to both remember and make memories.

After a few minutes, I go back inside and take a shower before the traffic jams start in the bathrooms. When they do, I can just sit back on the couch and relax.

Not long after I'm out of the shower, mom comes downstairs to start some coffee. She sets out two mugs, I'm assuming one for her and one for dad.

'Oh, I'm sorry Randy, I forgot you drink coffee now' she says after she notices me sitting at the counter. She goes to the cabinet and sets out another mug with a smile directed at me, then goes to take a shower, leaving the coffee percolating and me lost in thought.

A while later, at 8 a.m. sharp, we all pile in the car and leave for Indiana. This may not be the final time we leave this house, but it sure feels like it. The entire trip to Bloomington will take around six and a half hours.

We're staying at a hotel in Bloomington (courtesy of Dr. Lee) for three days while we take the preliminary looks at the houses we're considering buying.

We're on the road for a couple of hours before we stop at a gas station to use the rest room. After I finish, I grab a bottle of water from the long line of coolers on the back wall and take it up to the counter and pay for it.

'Who do you think you are, David Hasselhoff?' the old man asks while he's ringing up the water.

'No. For your information, I got this trying to help save the environment in Costa Rica' I say. He mumbles something in response that was either "ah, well" or "go to hell". Either way, I decide it's best if I just head on back outside. I tell Mark, who's out of the bathroom now, where I'm going.

I open the bottle of water once outside, and stare off into the distance. We're on the border of Michigan and Indiana. First I look back to Michigan, back to everything I've ever known and always loved. Then I turn around and look at Indiana. The only physical separation may be a green highway sign, but as far as I'm concerned, it's like comparing apples and oranges.

Wow. Just looking at it, Indiana looks dull.

I think if I had known that all this would happen, dad losing his job, us moving, et cetera, I probably would've stayed home this past year, rather than go to Costa Rica, even if the Costa Rica project was a huge dream of mine _and _a lot of fun.

I turn back around and look at Michigan. I'm off in a day dream of what life would've been like had I been here when the rest of the family comes out of the store.

'Hey, Randy, are you planning on walking the rest of the way to Bloomington?' dad asks me.

'Sorry' I say and head for the Nomad. I get in and go to my normal spot, the very back. I've always thought there's just something cool about being in the back of a car. I think it's because I feel unique in the fact that no matter where we're going, everyone always is technically there before I am. That sounds weird, I know.

We ride on for a little while longer, then dad stops at a Wendy's for lunch. After that, it only takes a couple hours to get to Bloomington.

We're booked in two different suites (Dr. Lee must be real desperate to get mom to come work with him. This hotel isn't real cheap either.) with me and Brad in one, and mom, dad, and Mark in the other.

'Don't take too long getting settled in. We still need to see a house this afternoon, and the appointment is at four fifteen' dad says once we get up to the fourth floor.

'I still don't understand why I have to share a room with you and mom' Mark complains.

'It was either that, or sleep on the floor in our room' Brad tells him.

'Good point' he says.

'Hey, Randy, we have a great view of the pool. And these big windows will be great for mooning' Brad says. This is what you're getting UCLA. I hope you're prepared.

* * *

A/N: Sorry it's taken so long to update. I just had a lot of inspiration for The Watcher and It's Magic, and not so much inspiration for this one.

I hope there's someone still reading out there. If you are, please review! Thanks.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


	4. Chapter 4: And Future Worries

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 4

"And Future Worries"

Jill's POV

My brain is about ready to explode from looking at houses all day long. All the houses seem to blend together.

'The one I liked the most was on Maple' Tim says.

'We didn't look at one on Maple, Brad says.

'No, no, it wasn't that, I was thinking of the one on Walnut' Tim says.

'You didn't like the garage at that one. I think you're talking about Birch' I say.

'No, it wasn't Birch, it was Cedar. Or Cherry. Or maybe it was Ash. It might not have even been on a street with a tree name' Tim says. I shake my head. As bad as this is, I have a feeling this will only get worse before it's all said and done.

'It was the great big white one, with the pillars out front, I think' Tim says.

'That's the White House, dad' Randy says.

'Well how much are they asking for it?' Tim asks. I'm not sure whether he's joking or if he's serious.

* * *

Tim's POV

Moving is a lot harder than I thought it would be. I've never had to actually look at houses before and decide which one I wanted to live in. We always lived in the same house when I was a kid, then I lived on campus at Western Michigan University, and then, after meeting Jill, we lived first at her apartment, and then I started construction on our current house.

I guess there is one good thing about moving. Jill was wrong. Eight years ago, when we remodeled our upstairs bathroom, Jill said that whatever color of tile we chose, we'd have to live with for the rest of our lives. I've thought about this numerous times today, but didn't dare bring it up. She probably wouldn't even remember what the tiles look like after seeing all the houses we did today.

* * *

Randy's POV

After the third house, I got bored, so I started counting the number of closets in the houses. I counted 11 walk in closets and 14 regular closets.

I've already decided that I don't like anything about Indiana. Does it sound like I'm being unfair by judging the state based on the handful of houses we looked at today? Too bad, I still don't like it.

* * *

Brad's POV

I'm glad I'm going off to college in Los Angeles. I certainly wouldn't want to live here. The houses seem nice and all, but the town is just…not me.

I've tried to stay out of the discussion of what house to buy. I figure I'll leave that up to the people who will actually have to live in the house.

Over all, I guess Indiana won't be that bad of a place to visit. "To visit" are the key words there.

* * *

Mark's POV

This is so weird. I never imagined living any place else. I guess I always knew that I would someday, when I get married and have a family of my own, but I still always thought I'd be able to go back to that house whenever I wanted to.

As weird as looking at other people's houses is, I'm sure it'll be even weirder to have other people looking at our house, our home, when the time comes for that.

Sure, I realize that it's the people inside the house that make the house a home, not the house itself, but still, after fourteen years, one kind of grows attached to the only house they've ever lived in.

* * *

A/N: Poor Mark. I can sympathize with him, and I've moved several times. It was hard for me to leave the first house I remember (the second one I've lived in over all), and I only lived there for five years. Then it was super hard to leave the state of Missouri when I'd only lived there for eleven years. God those were good times.

Anyways, I hope anyone who still remembers that this story exists and is reading it enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to have a little more action in the next one, but I kind of got stuck here.

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


	5. Chapter 5: A Moving Day

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 5

"A Moving Day"

A/N: Okay, so I'm back with this story. I had a dream last night where I got about twenty ideas, not to mention receiving ideas from Baxxie, who urged me to continue with this story. Thanks for the help :)

I also decided to skip forward about two months.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor

* * *

Jill's POV

_Moving day. I hate moving, and not just for the normal reasons like packing, finding enough cardboard boxes to hold everything you own, getting your address changed with the post office, the phone company, the cable company, the DMV, et cetera._

_All of this brings back painful childhood memories. I wish I had somebody to share these feelings with (well, other than this diary), but every time I try to talk with Tim or the boys, they always either pretend to be busy and leave, or cut me off. I would talk to Wilson about it, but I don't want to upset him._

_We found a nice house, on Michigan Street, coincidentally enough. I'm excited because it has a state of the art kitchen and spacious garden. Tim is excited because it has what he calls "projects". Of these "projects", the garage is the closest to being done; followed by the basement, and then the decks. (Yes, decks, plural! One downstairs, just off the dining room, and one upstairs, just outside the master bedroom)._

_Brad wanted to be here today to help us move, but I insisted that he stay out in Los Angeles so he could go to school. After all, you don't get into a school like UCLA by missing three days to help your parents move._

_I think Tim is the only one excited about today. Both Randy and Mark are less than enthusiastic, but what can we do?_

_I'm not sure how I feel. I mean, I know how I feel about moving. It's not so much the actual moving as it is going to Indiana that I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, it's frightening and depressing to be leaving everything and everybody we've known for the past twenty years, but on the other hand, it's kind of exciting to be starting over again._

* * *

Tim's POV

This is just lovely. I was hoping to get an early start this morning, but the U-Haul rental place doesn't open until 10:00.

On top of that, I can't find a single place in town that has any cardboard boxes. I don't want to have to drive to Dearborn just to find some.

Although I have been in a hurry, it's not because I can't wait to be stuck in the moving van with Jill for six and a half hours, listening to her nonstop moving horror stories and complaining.

I think I see a place up here on my right that has some boxes. It's about time.

* * *

Jill's POV

'You've been a part of our family for so long. What am I going to do without you Wilson? What will _Tim_ do without you? Where will he go to get his advice?' I say.

'And where will I go to quote famous philosophers and authors?' Wilson asks. We aren't really asking each other these questions; we're just wondering out loud.

'I guess I can kiss going to the opera goodbye' I say.

'Why's that?' Wilson asks.

'Because, Tim will probably either forget we're going or what day we're going and wind up buying football tickets or hockey tickets or basketball tickets or some kind of sports tickets' I elaborate.

'Ah yes. I remember the first time Tim ever came to me seeking advice on how to get out of that situation' he says.

_Flashback_

_Wilson's POV_

'_Heidi ho, good neighbor Tim' I greet, looking up from my Ouija Board._

'_Yeah, whatever Wilson' Tim says in response._

'_Problem?' I ask._

'_Yeah. Jill's mad because she says I'm not understanding of her feelings enough. We was supposed to go to the death hall, I mean, the opera hall, this weekend, but I bought these Lions tickets from Warren at work today. Do you have any quotes or funny stories to help me out?' he explains._

'_Did you know about Jill's plans for the opera?' I ask._

'_No, I forgot all about it' Tim says._

'_Why do you think that is, Tim?' I ask._

'_Because she bought the tickets eight months ago' he answers._

'_Is that really it, or did you subconsciously block it out of your mind because you don't enjoy the opera?' I question._

'_I don't know. What, am I on trial here?' he says._

'_Now I have these Lions tickets, and the opera tickets, and Jill told me to attend whichever I choose. I'd love to say "screw the opera" and go to the football game, but if I do, I'll never hear the end of it from Jill. And if I go to the opera, I'll never hear the end of that fat lady's singing in my ears. I really don't know what to do' Tim says._

'_Well, Pearl Buck, the Pulitzer Prize winning author, would know what to do. She said "You cannot make yourself feel something you do not feel, but you can make yourself do right in spite of your feelings"' I quote._

'_How does that apply to me?' he asks._

'_You can't make yourself like the opera if you don't like it, but you can still do the right thing and keep your promise to Jill about the opera, even though you'd rather go to the Lions game' I explain._

'_Thanks Wilson. Oh, here Jill comes now. I'll tell her what I've decided to do' Tim says._

'_Hey honey, I've decided that I'll just sell the Lions tickets to someone else, and we'll go to the opera Sunday. It's like Purell Bucket said, you can't make yourself feel up the fat lady at the opera if you'd rather be feeling Dick Butkus, but you can't rightly spite her feelings' Tim says, butchering my quote._

_End flashback_

Jill's POV

'Purell Bucket? I don't remember that one' I laugh.

'Wilson, you know you can let us know if you need anything, right?' I say, the smile running away from my face. 'I mean, we may be six and half hours away, but we'll always be there for you.' He nods his head.

'I've always felt that the true definition of a neighbor is not someone who is near you physically, but is someone who is near you emotionally.

'Oh, Wilson, I'm going to miss you so much' I say, trying to fight back the ever imminent tears.

'Who knows, it might not be that bad. Besides, we can call each other on the telephone. Or I could get a computer and we could instant message each other' he says. I can tell he's trying to be strong.

'Yeah, we could, but it wouldn't be the same. God, why are we even moving, Wilson? Why are you letting us throw away our lives here in Detroit? You shouldn't be trying to make moving seem alright, you should be trying to keep us from moving' I yell/cry.

'Now Jill, this isn't my decision to make. And you have to move, whether any of us are thrilled with it or not. Remember, you and Tim have no jobs here. What would you tell the people who have bought this house? And what would they tell the people that bought their house? And what would the people who bought the house of the people who bought this house tell the people who bought their house? And what would the people who bought the house of the people who bought the house of the people who bought this house tell the people who bought their house? And what would the people who bought the house of the people who bought the house of the people who bought the house of the people who bought this house tell the people who bought their house? And what would-' Wilson says until I finally stop him. If I didn't, I'd be here the rest of my life.

'Wilson! I doubt there would be _that _big of a chain reaction. I guess you're right though. We do have to move, and it's asinine of me to think otherwise. Besides, after all the house we looked at, Tim would kill me if we didn't move' I say.

'How many trips do you think it will take to get everything moved?' Wilson asks, changing the subject.

'I don't know. It'll depend on how big of a moving van Tim can get, and how much he thinks he can shove in to the thing at one time. Probably something like four or five trips. God, that'd be…32 ½ hours with Tim in one cramped up little space. Maybe thinking otherwise isn't so asinine' I say.

'Jill' Wilson says warningly. I decide it's best not to go there again. Just then, the phone rings. I excuse myself to go answer it, telling Wilson I'll be right back.

'Would you do me a favor?' I ask him when I get back.

'Certainly, as long as it doesn't involve trying to talk you out of moving' he says.

'Would you make sure the new owners, whoever they are, don't mess up the house too badly?' I ask.

'I'll certainly try, but what do you mean "whoever they are"? I thought the Clarks had decided to buy the house' I say.

'That was the realtor on the phone. The Clarks have backed out of the deal. Apparently, a house that they like better has been put up for sale' I explain with a groan at the end. Yet another reason to add to my "Reasons Why I Hate Moving List".

'Really? If that's the case, I might do one better than that. I'd like to buy the house' Wilson says, flooring me.

* * *

A/N: Okay, this story is back, and in my opinion, better than ever, considering I started writing this chapter with no clue whatsoever as to what was going to happen. (If anything).

If anyone is still reading this and has been holding out hope for this story to come back, thank you, and I hope you're satisfied with the results so far.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


	6. Chapter 6: Motor City Madhouse

Lightning in a Bottle Chapter 6

"Motor City Madhouse"

Jill's POV

Oh good, here comes Tim. I can tell him the news.

'You were gone for an hour and a half, and all you got was five boxes?' I ask when I see the meager load of cardboard he's hauling in.

'Yes, and I had to drive halfway to Atlantis to get them, too' Tim says in response.

'Well, I have some good news and some bad news' I say, barely able to contain my excitement.

'Alright, I'm in a bad enough mood the way it is, give me the bad news first' he says.

'The Clarks have backed out of the deal to buy the house' I say, just barely keeping a straight face.

'Well hell, the breaking of the seventh seal would be better news than that. What's the other news?' Tim asks.

'Wilson said he'd buy the house!' I exclaim.

'Wilson's going to buy the house? That's wonderful!' he smiles. It's the first time I've seen him smile in…let's just say that, for Tim, it's been far too long.

'Hey Randy,' Tim says, when he sees Randy come upstairs, 'guess what? Wilson is going to buy the house!'

'That's great' Randy says, although, judging by the sound of his voice, he actually means "whoopty freaking doo!", or something similar.

'Randy, what's the matter?' I ask.

'Yeah, I would've thought news like that would make you happy' Tim says.

'Why should I be happy? I don't want to move to Indiana or anywhere else, no matter who the new owner is. You should know that, dad!' Randy shouts, and then storms off down to his room.

'You should know that' I say to Tim. It's posed as a question.

'I don't know how I'm supposed to know that. I'm not a member of the psychic friends network' he says.

'Tim.'

'Jill.'

'Did you know Randy felt this way about moving?' I ask.

'Yes. But I asked him not to make a big deal out of it' Tim answers.

'Why? Had I known one of the boys felt this way, I would never have accepted that job with Dr. Lee' I say.

'That's exactly why I didn't tell you. Remember what all our previous debates on this topic led to? If you don't take this job, if we don't move, we'll wind up bankrupt, living out on the street somewhere, scrounging the remains of three day old Big Macs out of dumpsters to survive.'

'I think that scenario is a bit extreme' I say.

'You have to admit, I have a point about the income' he says.

'Point or no, that still doesn't change things for me. I can find a job somewhere here in Detroit. I'm not going to make anybody in this family do anything they don't want to do' I tell him.

'Okay, first of all, can I get that last part in writing? And second of all, it's a little late to back out of moving. I mean, we've already bought the house up there, and anyways, isn't Dr. Lee counting on you to go psycho annihilate his family?'

'First of all it's psychoanalyze, and second of all it isn't his family, it's his family practice. And as far as I'm concerned, Dr. Lee can find someone else to uproot theirs and their family's lives and go work there.' I say.

'Jill, you're being ridiculous' Tim says.

'No, I was being ridiculous, thinking of actually dragging my family off to Indiana' I say.

Tim sits down next to me on the couch. 'Honey, there's something bothering you about this. What is it?'

'I've told you a thousand times, I don't want to leave Detroit and everything else in Detroit that's been a part of our lives for over twenty years.'

Tim starts to say something else, but doesn't when he sees me get up.

I go down to Randy's room. He's sitting at his computer, staring at the screensaver.

'I'm sorry. I overreacted up there' he says.

'You had a right to. I mean, nobody consulted you or got your opinion before the decision was made' I say.

'It's not like a want some huge family forum like off of Full House or something. I just wanted to put in my two cents.'

'Well, you can keep your two cents. We're staying in Detroit' I tell him.

'What? Come on mom, we have to go to Indiana. It's a once in a lifetime thing. How many other jobs like this one will come along?'

'I thought you were opposed to leaving Detroit' I say.

'Oh, I still am. But I've been thinking. If being supportive of you and your career means moving to Indiana, I'll become a Hoosier' Randy smiles.

'Are you sure this is what you want?' I ask him.

'No, but I'm sure this is what's supposed to happen. How about you?' he asks.

'No, I'm not sure. But who is ever one hundred percent sure of anything?'

I go back upstairs to tell Tim we're going to Indiana.

* * *

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter.

Please read and review.

-Yours truly, Randy Taylor


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